IT is largely believed that the
British system of justice is unparalleled. And, of
course, there are many cases which can be cited to
substantiate this belief. But I feel that it is a
sweeping statement and it is hard to accept it as some
kind of universal truth. I think there were individuals
in England from time to time who (because of their
actions) created this kind of belief. However, this is
not necessarily always the case . Allow me, therefore, to
tell you the story of an innocent child with whom the
British were blatantly unjust.

Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the
shrewd king and iron-fisted administrator, had ruled
Punjab for 40 years. He had succeeded in forging unity
among the warring Sikh factions and people of different
loyalties. Punjab, under his rule, was the only area that
British could not touch. For centuries, the Afghans and
others had invaded Punjab, but it was Ranjit Singh who
had reversed the roles. He extended his kingdom and
became the arbiter of the throne of Kabul. Punjabis under
his rule had even rendered incapable Chinese satellites
in Tibet and stopped British expansion to the west.

It was at this juncture
that the illustrious Maharaja died ( June 27, 1839).
Dalip Singh, who was an infant at that time, was the
youngest of Maharaja Ranjit Singhs seven sons. He
grew up as an orphan, even though his mother was alive.
And this unbelievable, almost fictional turn of events,
could actually happen because of a strange sense of
punishment that the British had.

The British were obviously
very keen to bring Punjab under their rule. After
Maharaja Ranjit Singhs death, they systematically
invaded Punjab, annexed Jalandhar-Doaba, on the one hand
and gave away Jammu and Kashmir to Gulab Singh Dogra, on
the other. Rani Jindan, (infant Maharaja Dalip
Singhs mother) along with her brother, Jawahar
Singh, gave sleepless nights to the representatives of
the British and the warring factions from within the
palace. That she was a political novice and was faced
with rivalry from the other six sons of her husband
notwithstanding, Rani Jindan didnt make it
difficult for the British or other aspirants to rule
Punjab. In turn, the British humiliated her repeatedly
and reduced her annual allowance to a pittance. She was
"dragged out of the palace by her hair and put under
heavy guard at Shekhupura". Her brother, Jawahar
Singh, was killed by a "Army Panchayat" and she
was finally banished from Punjab to Varanasi.

On March 29, 1849, a
proclamation was made declaring the end of the Sikh
kingdom. The 11-year-old Maharaja Dalip Singh was forced
to present the Koh-i-noor to the British and step down
from the throne. The English took young Dalip Singh in
their custody without his mothers consent. What
kind of justice was this? They were planning to kill two
birds with one stone. They were punishing Rani Jindan, on
the one hand, and clipping the wings of a prince, on the
other. He was despatched to Mussoorie and later to
Fatehgarh in U.P. for schooling. However, in less than
five years-- by June 1854-- the 16- year- old Dalip Singh
was sent away to England. He was not allowed to meet his
mother.

In England, he was handed
over to Sir John Login to ensure that all his emotional
ties and cultural roots were severed. He was instructed
to address the Logins as mother and father. He was
neither allowed to return to India nor was he permitted
to write letters to his mother. He began growing up in
England, gradually forgetting his real self.

But once he became an
adult, he began understanding the cunning games that the
British were playing. He realised that though the British
had promised to only "take care of his throne"
after the first Anglo-Sikh War, they had become the
rulers themselves. So he wrote to the East India Company
that all restrictions on him should be removed and he
should be allowed to visit India in October 1857. But
before the British could respond to his letter, the
Mutiny of 1857 broke out. His letter was never answered.
In fact, the British expected him to condemn the
mutineers. But he did not oblige.

Eventually, the East India
Company allowed Maharaja Dalip Singh to visit India but
with a condition -- he would not visit Punjab. What would
you call it? Justice? The only living Maharaja of Punjab
was not allowed to visit his own motherland. In January
1861, he finally landed in Calcutta and checked into a
hotel.

From historical events it
appears that Rani Jindan, though exiled, had never lost
hope.. She had kept track of her son and his well-being.
However, for 13 long years she could neither see the face
of her son nor hear his voice. She suffered alone the
agony of having been forcibly parted from her son. It
ended when she arrived from Kathmandu to be finally
united with Dalip Singh.Reportedly for the almost English
Dalip Singh, it took about half- a- minute to break away
from the shackles of imposed grooming and to sink into
his mothers bosom.

Dalip Singh escorted his
mother to England , where she died on August 1,1863. Her
last wish was that she be cremated in her own country
near her husbands samadhi. Dalip Singh was yet
again not allowed to enter Punjab. He had to, perforce,
cremate his mother near Nasik on the banks of the
Narmada. By now he was full of hatred for the British. He
again wrote to the East India Company demanding the
restoration of his personal properties in Punjab. The
British had sold many jewels of Lahore palace which were
supposed to be under their care. He demanded that his
ancestral treasures should be restored to him. He also
pointed out that as per agreement his annual allowance
was aboutRs 5 lakh. However, only Rs 2.5 lakh was finally
approved by the British government. The irony of the
situation was that he was getting only Rs 1.30 lakh per
year. Very just, I suppose !

By now, Dalip Singh was
restless. He finally decided to leave England and reach
Punjab. In 1864, he had married one Bamba Mullar, who
bore him six children. The sons were named Victor Dalip
Singh, Fredric Dalip Singh, and Edward Dalip Singh. The
daughters were Bumpa Dalip Singh, Katherine Dalip Singh
and Sofia Dalip Singh. So in April 1886, Maharaja Dalip
Singh, along with his wife and six children, reached Aden
to finally head for Lahore, the then capital of Punjab.
But he was not allowed to step out of Aden. Frustrated,
his wife and children returned to England. But Maharaja
Dalip Singh, burning with rebellion, went back to Paris.
Within a year, by April 1887, he managed to enter Russia.

In Russia, he met
Alexander III and requested him to provide military and
financial support. He followed it with a letter on May
10, 1887, in which he wrote that he wished to free 25
crore Indians from the slavery of the British. "Many
royalties of India have promised to stand by me. I need
200,000 armymen and 2000 machine guns to fulfil my aim.
For this, I look up to you."

Meanwhile, he sent letters
through his personal messenger Aroor Singh to the rulers
of Awadh, Patiala, Nabha, Jind, Faridkot and Kapurthala
asking them to join hands with him to rise against the
British. But all his hopes came crumbling down when
Alexander III did not respond at all. This broke Dalip
Singh from within and he returned to Paris filled with
bitterness and frustration. He lived six years after this
passionate effort but not even once did he look in the
direction of England. Punjabs last legitimate ruler
died on October 22, 1893, in Grand Hotel, Paris.

To me it seems that this
man was born to bear the load tragedies. Can you imagine
that though all his six children married, not even one of
them was blessed with a child. Except for Princess Bamba
Dalip Singh, none of his children could live in Lahore in
the palace of their father and grandfather. However,
Princess Sofia Dalip Singh played a significant role as a
social activist in the life of British women. Women in
England did not have the right to vote. Princess Sofia
evolved a novel method to protest against this
discrimination. She used to tie her right hand with a
chain to a pole in front of the British Parliament and
distribute protest material with her left hand. She used
to stand there every day till the police took her away,
only to return again, the next morning. I was shown the
famous pole during my recent trip to England. It is now
called "Sofia Pole". I felt proud of her
contribution but my heart was heavy with the thought of
the tragic life that Dalip Singh led..